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Veteran soul singer Percy Sledge has a new album out, his first CD in a decade. NPR's Noah Adams talks with the album's producers, Barry Goldberg and Saul Davis, about re-creating the sound of the 1960s.

Weekend Edition Sunday music director Ned Wharton presents his annual holiday gift guide, with the latest edition of "Director's Cuts." Suggestions include the Blind Boys of Alabama (left), whose new CD, Go Tell It On the Mountain, features vocals by Tom Wait, Chrissie Hynde and others.

Like Whoa, Nelly!, her 2002 debut hit album, Nelly Furtado's new CD features diverse influences that reflect the young Canadian-born singer-songwriter's Portuguese heritage. NPR's Renee Montagne talks to Furtado about Folklore, which dives deeper into the texture and stories of her parents' homeland, the Azore Islands. Hear songs from the new CD.

Most pop and country music stars seem more interested in image than issues. Then there's Steve Earle, who speaks with NPR's Steve Inskeep about his politically charged music and the new documentary Just An American Boy: A Film About Steve Earle.

In 1958, Brown v. Board of Education was four years old, and the Civil Rights Movement was heating up. As a tribute to the cause of African-American freedom, jazz legend Sonny Rollins recorded Freedom Suite. This classic contains one of the first extended compositions for the tenor saxophone (it's more than 20 minutes long).

Cellist Anja Lechner and pianist Vassilis Tsabropoulos perform music by Greek Armenian composer G.I. Gurdjieff on a new CD, Chants, Hymns and Dances. The CD also features music composed by Tsabropoulos and interpretations inspired by Byzantine hymns. Hear NPR's Robert Siegel's conversation with Lechner and Tsabropoulos.

Mary Lou Williams taught herself how to play the piano and performed in public by the time she was six. She composed for the New York Philharmonic, arranged for Duke Ellington, and modernized her style as one of the few "stride" pianists. 1927-1940 tracks this boogie woogie master's musical development as a young woman.

Born Eunice Kathleen Waymom, Nina Simone adopted her stage name while playing in bars in Atlantic City. Often called the "high priestess of soul," Simone recorded soul, jazz, pop, blues and gospel music. This album covers her career from 1967-1972, just before she moved to France to protest American racism.

Rock critic Ken Tucker reviews two new releases: Coldplay's X&Y and Dressy Bessy's Electrified.

Hear and download a full concert from one of England's most exciting new bands. Bloc Party's full performance at Washington, DC's 9:30 Club was originally webcast live on NPR.org on June 16. It's the latest in a series of live concerts from NPR's All Songs Considered.